In The Spotlight with Abigail Pogrebin

In the Spotlight: Shmuly Yanklowitz

Abigail Pogrebin is joined by Rabbi Dr. Shmuly Yanklowitz to discuss "45 Great Philosophers and What They Mean for Judaism," his book which explores forty-five of the most influential philosophers throughout history and how Jewish ideas might engage with each of the philosophers and their philosophical projects.

In the Spotlight: Rabbi Matthew Gewirtz

Abigail Pogrebin is joined by Rabbi Matthew D. Gewirtz, author of a memoir that recounts his journey to self-discovery and offers insights on how to nurture communities despite today's climate of fractured politics and hostility.

In the Spotlight: Oren Kessler - "Palestine 1936"

Abby Pogrebin is joined by award-winning author Oren Kessler to discuss "Palestine 1936," his book that looks at the origin story of the world’s most intractable conflict and reveals world-changing events through extraordinary individuals on all sides.

In the Spotlight: Beatrice Weber

Abigail Pogrebin is joined by speaker, activist, former Hasidic rebbetzin, mother of 10 and the executive director of Yaffed, Beatrice Weber, to discuss her organization’s mission of improving secular education in Hasidic and Haredi schools.

In the Spotlight: A.J. Jacobs

Abigail Pogrebin is joined by author A.J. Jacobs to hear about his humorous and insightful experience attempting to live according to the original meaning of the U.S. Constitution for a year.

In the Spotlight: Devora Steinmetz

Abigail Pogrebin is joined by Jewish scholar and author Devora Steinmetz to discuss ideas from her book "Why Rain Comes From Above," which explores how imaginative religious reading can deepen our understanding of life, the world, and God.

In the Spotlight: Roberta Satow - "Our Time Is Up"

Abigail Pogrebin speaks with author and psychologist Roberta Satow about "Our Time Is Up," her part-fiction, part-memory book that offers an intimate look at psychoanalysis as seen through Roberta’s experience as both a patient and analyst.

In the Spotlight: The Nightingale of Iran

Sisters Danielle and Galeet Dardashti join Abigail Pogrebin to discuss "The Nightingale of Iran," their documentary podcast ranked the #1 Jewish podcast this week, in which they reveal painful secrets and explore why their family left Iran in the 1960s at the height of national fame.

In the Spotlight: Batya Sperling-Milner on Torah Reading for the Blind

Abby Pogrebin speaks with Batya Sperling-Milner, the Torah student who made Jewish history when she became the first blind student to chant her bat mitzvah parsha in an Orthodox shul using a braille Torah Scroll.  Batya is also joined by her mother, Rabbanit Aliza Sperling, as well as Livia Thompson (Executive Director of JBI).

In the Spotlight: Maurice Samuels on Alfred Dreyfus

Abigail Pogrebin is joined by Maurice Samuels, author of a biography which analyzes Alfred Dreyfus’s complex relationship to Judaism and antisemitism and illustrates the profound effect of the Dreyfus Affair on the lives of Jews around the world.